Thanks to software like Apple's Siri or Microsoft's Cortana, it's easier than ever to do something on our phone or computer. All we have to do is "talk", and our favorite song starts playing a few seconds later. But in the neat" future, asking our phone to play a song by using our voice will seem as old--fashioned. That's because US tech company Microsoft recently applied for a patent* for a "brain control interface"(BCI): meaning that soon, we may be able to control our phone and computer with our thoughts.
BCI technology works by changing brain signals into computer commands. This technology isn't brand new, however. Last year, for example, it was reported that scientists were able to help a disabled man from the US, 53-year-old Bill Kochevar, to move again. To do this, Kochevar was fitted with BCI technology, as well as equipment to make his muscles move. After a few weeks of getting used to it, Kochevar was able to use his thoughts to "tell" the BCI to move his muscles, meaning he was able to feed himself for the first time in years.
Apart from helping disabled people, it's hoped that BCI technology will improve the daily lives of other people too. US social networking platform Facebook announced last year that it was working off BCI technology to help people type by using their brain. By 2020, the company hopes to have created a system that will allow people to type up to 100 words per minute just by thinking about them.
However, many people are worried that technology that tan read our thoughts will create privacy problems, especially if social media companies are included. But Facebook researcher Regina Dugan said at a meeting last year that the company has no interest in reading people's private thoughts. "That might be more than any of us care to "know. And it's not something any of us should have a right to know," she said.
